Orange Peel Origami Gets Paper Folding Foodies Juiced

Yoshihiro Okada was peeling an orange one day and casually noticed that the removed peel looked like... well, something more than just a discarded orange peel. A little practice and a lot of oranges later, Okada had standardized enough peeling methods to create a veritable orange peel zoo!

Now Okada is sharing his a-peeling concept with the world. “New Way To Peel An Orange”(Atarashii Mikan no Mukikata) has zoomed up the Japanese best-sellers list, reaching sixth place at Amazon Japan. The book costs 1,050 yen or around $12.50 per copy and is profusely illustrated with step-by-step instructions so that speakers of any language shouldn't have much trouble following along.

Just to be technical, the “orange” in question is actually a Mikan, a smaller, sweeter, seedless citrus fruit known by many as a Mandarin Orange. It's usually peeled from the center of the bottom – HOW you peel it is up to you and Yoshihiro Okada.

Here's a short video of how to peel a Mikan to form a rabbit:

“New Way To Peel An Orange” by Yoshihiro Okada shows you how 25 ways to peel your Mikan with the results being various kinds of animals.

Scorpions, moose, horses and more, often rendered so that the orange's tiny green bottom button becomes the created creature's eye. Fun for the whole family... and a great way to get kids their daily dose of vitamin C! (via Walker Plus and Japan Style)